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Al Rosen subject of new documentary

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Al Rosen, a four-time All-Star and 1953 American League MVP, is the subject of a new documentary: "Beating the Odds: The Al Rosen Story."

After seven full seasons with the Indians, Rosen later served as president of three major league teams - the Yankees, Astros and Giants -- and was named Major League Executive of the Year for turning around the San Francisco Giants in 1987.

In the new documentary, Rosen, a one-time collegiate and Golden Gloves boxer, pulls no punches in interviews conducted with the film's writer and producer, Bill Levy, a former baseball writer and now a film producer in Cleveland.

That's especially true of the anti-Semitism faced by the "Hebrew Hammer," as he was known. In the documentary, Rosen talks of the slurs he faced in the minors and then the majors, and also of Elmer Yoter, a manager in the Boston Red Sox minor-league system, insisting that Rosen would never make it in baseball. Yoter told a 17-year-old Rosen to "Go get a lunch pail. You'll never make it in this game."

Instead, Rosen led the American League with 37 home runs in 1950 as a rookie, and batted .336, hit 43 homers and drove in 145 RBI in 1953. In an injury-shortened career, Rosen drove in 100 or more runs five times and was the hero of the 1954 All-Star Game, hitting two homers and driving in five runs.

After his playing career, Rosen was Present and COO of the Yankees in 1978 and 1979 under George Steinbrenner, then spent five years as GM of the Astros and seven with the Giants.

The DVD was written and produced in conjunction with the Cleveland Indians and is available at Indians Team Shops (Progressive Field, Westgate Mall, SouthPark Mall and The Strip in Canton), Amazon.com and www.rosendocumentary.com.